Soolin from Blake’s 7 : TJ

This is me portraying Soolin from #Blakes7, the British sci-fi series. I was in charge of the masquerade competition for the Chicago area convention Scorpio 2 in 1984, and I wore this one while serving on the convention committee. It helped that I resembled Glynis Barber, who played Soolin . My hair is actually blonde - for some reason these photos made it look a bit red.

Costume made completely from scratch using photo references. Gun was a Star Wars blaster, painted silver with barrel and sight modified to match Soolin’s.

GARRETT

My first experience attending a convention was in 2006 with a friend of mine. We just graduated high school and wanted to check out Anime Expo which was in Anaheim at the time before their move to Los Angeles. I had heard that people dressed up for these things so my friend’s mom made a super quick, super cheap Monkey D. Luffy shirt and BOOM, I was Luffy! I didn’t think too much of it but when we first got there a little kid recognized who I was and that’s when I fell in love with cosplay.

LONDON COMIC CON 2018

In 2018 I return to London Comic Con to see how the convention has changed since being bought out by Reed Pop. The crowds were as packed as ever so here’s some phone photos

COSPLAY IN ALASKA : Matt Jarvis

Remembering my childhood, I believe My Neighbor Totoro was my first anime feature film, didn’t mind the dubbed version until discovering subbed versions of animes in my high school years. 

COMIKAZE EXPO 2011

2011 was the first year of Comikaze Expo which will later changed names a few times to finally Los Angeles Comic Con in 2018. Here’s a gallery of photos I took.

OVERLAND PARK, KS 2014

Chuck and his friends from Stillwater, OK traveled to Naka-kon in Kansas. I can’t recall if they left their prop weapons at home or if they were so behind on their cosplay that they figured they would find some when they got here. But Day Zero night we hop into his car and found a dollar store and search for prop guns.

TOKYO, 2014

I found myself in Tokyo towards the end of the year - October to be exact. I heard there wss a cosplay event at a park in Ikebukuro. I wasn’t sure whwat to expect and a red carpet definitely wasn’t in mind but there was a long red carpet where cosplayers walked down and posed. Here’s some photos from that event.

KENDRA

Deadpool was one of the first comic book characters that I really connected with. The humor and antics were so funny, and it’s one of the only comic series that I collect. Well, I stumbled across the alternate universe timeline and that’s when I first saw Lady Deadpool, who’s just as awesome and badass!

This was not long before C2E2 and I was dead set on getting that on my list for the convention.I ordered an airsoft gun off Amazon and cut it up/painted it to look like a gun in the comics, ordered a utility belt and made a belt buckle, and ordered all my fabric for the zentai suit.

Time was running out though and I needed some help with things I couldn’t do on my own (tracing out lines on the zentai suit base for the black details, eye holes…the important stuff), so along to the con came my sewing machine.

HUNTER

Ever since I saw my first anime InuYasha at the age of 6, I had always been fascinated with the uniqueness of anime compared to the typical cartoons of my generation. I would constantly watch anime new and old, focusing on the differences of culture, art, and music.

LUNA

As a kid I used to make little costumes for the dolls. My parents would always help me make my Halloween costumes from scratch. So I was really crafty from day one. I was energetic and a handful but my parents have always supported my hobbies and choices in life. So when I got into cosplay in middle school they even took me to the fabric shops and asked friends to help me learn how to make what I wanted. Even my father would make me a sword from wood if I needed it.

CAROLINE & MOSES

Moises and I first met during fall semester 2014 at our communication class at Antelope Valley College. I was attracted to his quick-witted jokes as well as his kind and caring nature. I was also working on my Duela Dent cosplay. My fan devotion to the character kept me going to complete the costume no matter how long it took.

AVIS

Who l am now and who l was before l started cosplaying are two entirely different people. Cosplay changed my life and who l am as a person. People talk to me now and just assume l’ve always been this person that enjoys attention and having her picture taken.

Are you kidding?! People terrified me! But l knew my own weaknesses and forced myself to interact with people and to stand tall and have my picture taken, and each time it got a little easier.

I became a confident person because l wanted to be that confident person l always admired. And every single person who has ever come up to me at a convention has been an overwhelming part of that.

- Avis (Dallas, TX)

Photo: Cosplay in America

TEH PRINCESS

“I was first introduced to cosplay without knowing what it was. I wanted to see what the conventions were all about and I wanted an excuse to dress up as one of my favorite childhood video game characters, Princess Peach. So I bought a costume, wore it, and had a wonderful time. And since then I’ve been making my own costumes and attending conventions. I’ve learned a lot from this hobby and the people in the community and it’s a big part of who I’ve become today.”

- Teh Princess (New Orleans, LA)

Photo: Cosplay in America

JEREMY

My first home built costume was Boba Fett for Halloween back in 1997.  Ever since I saw the original trilogy, Star Wars has been a huge part of my life and influenced me to pursue a career as a stop motion animator and sculptor.  Once my Powdered Toast Man cosplay was complete, I knew I wanted to challenge myself with something bigger and that had rarely/never been seen before. And it had to be from Star Wars for good measure.

Gentleman Peridot : treatzcosplay // photo: fanexpocanada

My life has changed a lot in the last four years since my last interview! My Kida cosplay opened up a whole new world to me, one filled with confidence in my own skin as well as confidence in my skills. This pushed me to enter my first cosplay competition the following Spring where I entered an original design for a male Viera from Final Fantasy. I was shocked to be awarded Best Craftsmanship in my category, but what was more rewarding was the network of incredible makers I gained through the competition, both fellow competitors and judges. This network led to amazing opportunities such as being interviewed by Bill Doran(@chinbeard) of Punished Props, hosting panels on sewing at my local con, being asked to join group cosplays by amazing cosplayers in other countries, and even being part of sponsored cosplay projects!